Community football is grass roots football. In the WRFL we are very proud of our grass roots football community, which is one of the largest in Victoria in terms of games each weekend.
Our junior football competition covers over 85 games of football each Sunday, from Under 9s to Under 16s and multiple grades of each level. Whilst we also have 20 Division One Senior and Reserve grade games, 22 Division Two Senior and Reserve grade games and seven Under 18s games, totalling 49 games of ‘senior’ football. With 134 games of football played every week in the WRFL, we require over 260 umpires each weekend, with around 150 younger umpires involved in junior football each Sunday.
It is from this group of younger umpires where we have been able to develop many of our current senior umpires in all three disciplines of field, boundary and goal umpires. When playing football, there is a pathway to play AFL, likewise umpiring in the WRFL can and has, led to AFL umpiring. Currently the 2014 Victorian based AFL boundary umpires have five umpires out of the 18 boundary umpire panel (27%) who have started and learnt the skills in the WRFL. Troy Pannell is a senior field umpire whilst goal umpires David Dixon and Michael Craig are also WRFL graduates.
The current WRFL senior field, boundary and goal umpire panels include umpires who have learnt their skills through the WRFL Umpires Academy program established in 2009. Shamus Dundon, Ryan Webster, Bernie O’Dwyer, Dean McGowan and Cameron Terrill are field umpires who are umpiring Division One and Two football. The boundary umpires include a very large list with Josh McMorrow being the stand out who has been selected to umpire in the Metro V Country Championship final in June, he also boundary umpired last year’s Division One Grand Final. Whilst in the goals we have a number of young umpires now umpiring in Division One and Two senior football on a regular basis.
The green shirt program is designed to recognise umpires in their first year of field umpiring. Whilst we have a number of first year umpires in the boundary and goal, they wear the traditional WRFL white uniforms as field umpires are the ones open to the greatest scrutiny from the spectators, so they wear green to indicate they are learning their skill. We are very fortunate in the WRFL that the football community fully supports the young green shirt umpires, and in fact all umpires, which in turn allows the game of football to further develop in our league.
This weekend, as part of the AFL fixture, the focus is on community umpiring, however I would suggest it is just another weekend of great football in the WRFL and the umpiring group is just another team trying to do their best, like all teams in the WRFL.
Good luck to all teams in 2014, and enjoy the great game we are all involved in.
BY WRFL DIRECTOR OF UMPIRING-MARK WESTGARTH
Last Modified on 30/04/2014 13:33